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Finding Our Why

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FINDING OUR WHY

Korn Ferry CEO Gary Burnison highlights how great leaders will help their
charges find something that inspires.


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Gary Burnison

Chief Executive Officer

Gary Burnison is CEO of Korn Ferry and the author of Take Control: The Career
You Want, Where You Want.

I’ll never forget that first day of work—starting with a new Brooks Brothers
suit and my shiny wing tips—as I carried a hard-sided leather briefcase filled
with (for whatever reason) nothing but a handful of freshly sharpened pencils
and a thick pad of yellow lined paper.   

However, merely hours after I pushed through the heavy oak door heading into my
first job out of college, ready to take on the new world, the briefcase was
hastily tossed under a desk amid a sea of cubicles, and my suit coat was slung
over a folding metal chair. My first official assignment was awarded… moving
boxes from one storage room to another.

This memory came flooding back to me a couple of weeks ago when I stepped into a
conference room filled with our interns in the UK. You could feel their
freshness and eagerness—the palpable energy of possibility.

At the beginning of the session, I asked, “Why are we here?” The answers varied
but the themes were common – learning, trying, exploring, and experiencing.
Then, shortly after the meeting concluded, as I got coffee in the office
kitchen, I ran into one of the interns.  

That’s when I asked the question. “So, why are you here?”

First came the smile, then a shrug of the shoulders. “I guess I’m just trying to
figure out what I want to do with my life.”

An honest answer to a pretty big question—and I’ve been thinking about it ever
since. Doesn’t it apply to all of us—whether we’re just starting out, in the
throes of our careers, or even entering the last stage—and all the experiences
that shape us in between? Sometimes we will conquer the new and different, and
at other times our ambitious perceptions may not meet reality.

As Mark Royal, a Ph.D. in our firm’s Consulting practice, told me this week,
“Engagement walks in the door, and it trips over enablement. Our motivation is
going to be driven by our day in and day out experiences and the connections and
interactions we have with other people.”

We are all searching for our why.

And this has become even more relevant over the past few years—prompting people
to reflect on how (and if) their life and work bring meaning.

If we’re honest with ourselves, though, we know how easy it is to forget the
“why.” We too often focus instead on “what” must be accomplished—or jump ahead
to the strategy of “how” to get there.

But the real question is always the why.

So, when we lose sight of our why, all it takes is a glance back at those
momentous first days—and we recall what uplifted, inspired, and motivated us.
Walking through the gates of Disneyland for the first time… into a museum to
view awe-inspiring art in person… or gazing up at the spires of a historic
building.

Our why is a constant even as everything else morphs and changes. I was reminded
of this the other day when I met with a CEO who was dressed very casually. I’ll
admit, I was surprised—at our last meeting years ago he had greeted me in a
suit, button-down shirt, and tie. Yet no matter how he showed up, his
passion—his why—remained timeless.

Here are some thoughts:

Minding the motivation gap. Not all motivation is created equal. Think of it
this way: Intrinsic is what gets you up in the morning. Extrinsic is what the
world delivers to you during the day. No wonder then that intrinsic is the most
powerful, and our firm’s nearly 100 million assessments affirm this. People tend
to do more when they are intrinsically motivated—by their excitement, personal
satisfaction, and sense of accomplishment. Fortunately, there are levers that
leaders can pull to support people’s intrinsic motivation. Simply put, create an
environment of learning, growing, and developing—then get out of the way.

Tapping discretionary energy. It starts when our personal why gets activated—and
we feel a strong connection to the mission and vision of the organization.
That’s when we’re more likely to give our all. We unleash our discretionary
energy—that currency of commitment that can be withheld or spent freely.

Most people want to grow, learn, and be part of something bigger than
themselves. All these deep desires are at the core of their why. In other words,
when people are happy, they’re motivated, and when they’re motivated, they
outperform. That’s why the why matters.

More than existential, it is essential.


Read more This Week in Leadership articles

 

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